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I understand ENY, but, had he shown the cop his ID when asked do you think it would have escalated like it did? The cops were just responding to a call. I understand that this might be outrageous to him to be asked to prove that he is the owner of his home but what is the cop supposed to do when he’s asked to investigate a robbery? Yes, I completely agree that the incident escalated to the point of absurdity. I don’t understand why he was so confrontational from the get go. If it had been someone robbing his home he’d have been glad the cops responded. Didi they go too far once they confirmed he was the homeowner, yes. Did gates act unreasonably towards people who’s job it is to respond to calls and were just trying to protect his home, yes.
Wrong on all counts.
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The officer asked Gates to “step out onto the porch and speak with me,” the report says. “[Gates] replied, ‘No, I will not.’ He then demanded to know who I was. I told him that I was ‘Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police’ and that I was ‘investigating a report of a break in progress’ at the residence.
“While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed, ‘Why, because I’m a black man in America?’ ”
According to the report, Gates initially refused to show the officer his identification, instead asking for the officer’s ID. But Gates eventually did show the officer his identification that included his home address.
“The police report says I was engaged in loud and tumultuous behavior. That’s a joke,” Gates told The Root. “It escalated as follows: I kept saying to him, ‘What is your name, and what is your badge number?’ and he refused to respond. I asked him three times, and he refused to respond. And then I said, ‘You’re not responding because I’m a black man, and you’re a white officer.'”
Awesome Kens – good to hear. The crowd last night was amazing. Everyone was so friendly. It’s always cool to see music bring so many different types of people together (kinda like blogs pertaining to brooklyn brownstones)
M4L, here here!! On a lighter note, Mrs. C noted, while watching Obama throw out the first pitch at the All-Star game, that he was wearing mom jeans. I didn’t think anything of it until she mentioned yesterday how she called it and it was all over the news.
Wouldn’t the fact that it’s daytime be more reason that the neighbor should have been able to see Prof. Gates and his cane and luggage (Do thieves carry luggage?!) more easily.
One would think that the woman would have recongnized her neighbor, Henry Louis Gates. Dr. Gates is a big deal at Harvard. This woman, Lucia Whalen, works at Harvard, specifically as head of Fundraising. She would likely be familiar with the bigwigs at Harvard. Frankly, the situation is sad, it sounds like people at every point over-reacted. Unfortunately, being a minority is still tough in this country, and I think that’s why this story resonates with and frustrates so many people.
etson- 12:30pm is full daylight. The neighbor couldn’t see it was Gates? Couldn’t see the luggage? The cane? If she was that blind she had no business calling the police.
Just checked – about 40% of burglaries are in daytime, so “quite common” = fair description.
My initial comment was based on experiences growing up in an area that had a fairly large burglary problem, and I would have guessed slightly higher than that.
“DH – thanks sooo much for all those suggestions
I think it’s between 24 Prince or a suggestiion my friend offered up -“Bread” – ever been there?”
We used to order from Bread alot at my office when we worked late. Some people love it, I personally hate it. Perhaps there stuff doesn’t deliver well – but it does have a cult following amongst some people. To be fair it is a cool looking spot.
I understand ENY, but, had he shown the cop his ID when asked do you think it would have escalated like it did? The cops were just responding to a call. I understand that this might be outrageous to him to be asked to prove that he is the owner of his home but what is the cop supposed to do when he’s asked to investigate a robbery? Yes, I completely agree that the incident escalated to the point of absurdity. I don’t understand why he was so confrontational from the get go. If it had been someone robbing his home he’d have been glad the cops responded. Didi they go too far once they confirmed he was the homeowner, yes. Did gates act unreasonably towards people who’s job it is to respond to calls and were just trying to protect his home, yes.
Wrong on all counts.
_____________________________________________________
The officer asked Gates to “step out onto the porch and speak with me,” the report says. “[Gates] replied, ‘No, I will not.’ He then demanded to know who I was. I told him that I was ‘Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police’ and that I was ‘investigating a report of a break in progress’ at the residence.
“While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed, ‘Why, because I’m a black man in America?’ ”
According to the report, Gates initially refused to show the officer his identification, instead asking for the officer’s ID. But Gates eventually did show the officer his identification that included his home address.
“The police report says I was engaged in loud and tumultuous behavior. That’s a joke,” Gates told The Root. “It escalated as follows: I kept saying to him, ‘What is your name, and what is your badge number?’ and he refused to respond. I asked him three times, and he refused to respond. And then I said, ‘You’re not responding because I’m a black man, and you’re a white officer.'”
“Just checked – about 40% of burglaries are in daytime, so “quite common” = fair description.”
Source?
Awesome Kens – good to hear. The crowd last night was amazing. Everyone was so friendly. It’s always cool to see music bring so many different types of people together (kinda like blogs pertaining to brooklyn brownstones)
M4L, here here!! On a lighter note, Mrs. C noted, while watching Obama throw out the first pitch at the All-Star game, that he was wearing mom jeans. I didn’t think anything of it until she mentioned yesterday how she called it and it was all over the news.
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_12884660?source=most_viewed
Wouldn’t the fact that it’s daytime be more reason that the neighbor should have been able to see Prof. Gates and his cane and luggage (Do thieves carry luggage?!) more easily.
No, no pass. She owes Prof. Gates an apology.
One would think that the woman would have recongnized her neighbor, Henry Louis Gates. Dr. Gates is a big deal at Harvard. This woman, Lucia Whalen, works at Harvard, specifically as head of Fundraising. She would likely be familiar with the bigwigs at Harvard. Frankly, the situation is sad, it sounds like people at every point over-reacted. Unfortunately, being a minority is still tough in this country, and I think that’s why this story resonates with and frustrates so many people.
etson- 12:30pm is full daylight. The neighbor couldn’t see it was Gates? Couldn’t see the luggage? The cane? If she was that blind she had no business calling the police.
Just checked – about 40% of burglaries are in daytime, so “quite common” = fair description.
My initial comment was based on experiences growing up in an area that had a fairly large burglary problem, and I would have guessed slightly higher than that.
“DH – thanks sooo much for all those suggestions
I think it’s between 24 Prince or a suggestiion my friend offered up -“Bread” – ever been there?”
We used to order from Bread alot at my office when we worked late. Some people love it, I personally hate it. Perhaps there stuff doesn’t deliver well – but it does have a cult following amongst some people. To be fair it is a cool looking spot.